Real estate giants Villar, Ayala and Yulo lost a 430 hectare LANDGRABBING case in Sta. Rosa, Laguna. Only the Villar side (that got 50 hectares out of the disputed 430 hectares) filed and lost on appeal while Ayala and Yulo stood aside to wait for the decision which also affects their separate but adjacent land claims.

The final verdict was promulgated in February of 2016 but then Aquino Administration Department of the Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Paje did not release the landmark decision. With the assumption of the Duterte Administration last June 30, 2016 and a new DENR Secretary in the person of Gina Lopez, the ancestral owners of the contested land are confident that JUSTICE will prevail. The long-standing dispute has resulted in the LOSS of LIVES on the side of farmer families who have always denounced FAVORITISM on the part of government land officials, local government unit executives and the police. The real estate moguls have resorted to physical violence and legal harassment in the form of filing endless frivolous case in the barangay and municipal levels.

Sta. Rosa, Laguna has grown into a prime suburban development area with the old industrial factories now side-by-side with plush subdivisions. The greatest impact of the adverse decision against the developers is the question of whether the REAL OWNERS would take PHYSICAL CONTROL of the mall, retail and office areas as well as high-end houses that are already occupied by the unsuspecting “BUYERS” who have paid, in part or in full, for their properties. Developers, of course, have the option to purchase the land that they have already improved and absorb huge losses in exchange for peace of mind. Otherwise, they stand to be deluged with lawsuits as well as TARNISHING their CREDIBILITY which may affect future sales in their many other projects.

#Duterte #ChangeIsHere #WarOnDrugs #NoToOligarchs #LandGrabbing